William Daley in July 2000, when he became manager of Al Gore's presidential campaign. Photograph: Leslie E Kossoff/AP

Barack Obama is considering appointing as his new White House chief of staff William Daley, a member of one of the most famous political dynasties in the US, which has run the Democratic machine in Chicago for more than 50 years.

ABC News reported a White House official as confirming that Obama has spoken to Daley but the official stressed no final decision has been made.

If Daley, 62, accepts, his appointment will be controversial, solidifying the image of a White House controlled by a close circle of Chicago insiders. It is unlikely to go down well with parts of the Democratic base, given Daley's background as an executive of the bankers JP Morgan Chase and his criticism of healthcare reform.

The president was flying back to Washington today after a two-week family holiday in Hawaii. He faces an in-tray stacked with problems, from a Republican-dominated House of Representatives to foreign policy issues such as Iran, but one needing fast attention is a White House reshuffle.

It is a chance to freshen up a team that has been criticised for failing to reproduce in the office the slick political messaging of the 2008 presidential campaign, being too exclusive and not maintaining closer relations with Congress.

He has three key vacancies to fill and, as is usual two years into an administration, other office holders are either planning to leave or will be forced out. Chief White House adviser David Axelrod, who has not enjoyed Washington, wants to return to Chicago to prepare for the 2012 re-election campaign. Larry Summers, chief economics adviser, is also due to leave. The previous chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, another Chicago exile, left in October to run for mayor of Chicago.

Obama interrupted his holiday to sound out Daley about the job. He is the son of late Chicago mayor Richard J Daley, an Irish-American and one of the last of the big city bosses. His brother, also Richard, is the present mayor.

Chicago city hall is a breeding ground for a particular brand of no-nonsense, take-no-prisoners kind of politics.

William Daley was commerce secretary in Bill Clinton's administration and an adviser to former vice-president Al Gore in his failed 2000 presidential election bid.

In the Washington Post in December 2009, he offered a glimpse of his thinking about the Obama administration, advocating a shift to the centre.

"Either we plot a more moderate, centrist course or risk electoral disaster not just in the upcoming midterms but in many elections to come," he said.

His appointment would intensify the debate between liberals who feel the administration needs to be more aggressively leftwing and those who argue for a move even closer to the centre. In an interview with the New York Times, he described health reform as a miscalculation.

He offered financial support and advice to Obama in his run for the presidency but also covered his bets by funding rivals Hillary Clinton and John Edwards.

Since Emanuel, a typical Chicago bruiser, left the White House, his job has been held on an interim basis by Pete Rouse, a less aggressive personality.

News that Daley is being considered was broken by the Bloomberg news agency. The White House press secretary, Robert Gibbs, refused to confirm or deny it, saying he was "not going to comment on personnel speculation".

Gibbs for months has been the subject of speculation that he too will move to a new job, ranging from chairman of the Democratic national committee to a backroom job as a White House adviser.

Among those almost certain to join the White House in a senior position is David Plouffe, who plotted Obama's campaign strategy in 2008 and is favourite to replace Axelrod as chief White House adviser. Another tipped for promotion is Gene Sperling, adviser to the Treasury secretary Tim Geithner, and a possible replacement for Summers.

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